Did You Set Your Clocks an Hour Ahead?

It's time to "spring forward" to Daylight Saving Time. The official change occurred at 2 this morning (Sunday). At that time, clocks reading 2am should have been set ahead to 3am.

If you forgot, you will be an hour late for events Sunday. And if you accidentally set your clocks back, you will be two hours late!

Safety officials suggest this is a good time to check the batteries in your smoke detectors (and carbon monoxide detectors, if you have them), as well.

The main purpose of Daylight Saving Time (called "Summer Time" many places in the world) is to make better use of daylight. A poll done by the U.S. Department of Transportation indicated that Americans liked Daylight Saving Time because "there is more light in the evenings / can do more in the evenings."

Daylight Saving Time also saves energy. Studies done by the U.S. Department of Transportation show that Daylight Saving Time trims the entire country's electricity usage by a significant, but small amount, of less than one percent each day with Daylight Saving Time. We save energy in both the evening and the morning because we use less electricity for lighting and appliances.

Daylight Saving Time begins for most of the United States at 2am on the first Sunday of April. Time reverts to standard time at 2am on the last Sunday of October. This year, Daylight Saving Time lasts until Halloween--October 31st, when we turn the clocks back an hour for Standard Time.

For more information about Daylight Saving Time in the US and around the world, check out webexhibits.org/daylightsaving/index.html.

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Author: R. Cohen